Life

The Initial Spark: Why I Did My First IRONMAN

24 Legacy athletes share how their fire was ignited to sign up for that first full-distance race. One thing they all have in common? The flames are still burning.

The IRONMAN Legacy Program recently announced their class of 2016 athletes who have earned a slot to the IRONMAN World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. These particular athletes have pushed their mental and physical boundaries, stayed dedicated when most would throw in the towel, and dug deep to find the endurance to complete 12 or more IRONMAN races in order to be considered for the Legacy Program and ultimately earn a Kona slot.

As these athletes look forward to competing at Kona in October, below they reflect on what motivated them to jump into their first IRONMAN journey in the first place. Take it from the Legacy athletes, this is a first-time experience you won't want to miss out on.

"When I was little I watched the IRONMAN World Championship on t.v. I knew someday I wanted to race in Kona, to test myself and see what I was made of. In 2000, IRONMAN California was announced and I knew I couldn't pass it up, this was my chance. The challenge of preparing for the unknown was addictive and required a target focus mentality that I found very appealing. I have been hooked ever since." -Joe Huy (San Marcos, California, USA), Aviaton Consultant, 13x IRONMAN finisher

"I had done [IRONMAN] 70.3s before and then got out of triathlon for five years. Nothing motivates a person more than knowing you are signed up for an IRONMAN because there is so much prep that needs to be done just to finish. I actually had a decent race!" -Craig Stevens (St. Louis, Missouri, USA), Business owner, 14x IRONMAN finisher

"The idea of completing something that I would always be proud of and I ended up discovering more of myself in the process." -Brett Kruse (Seattle, Washington, USA) Starbucks’ Director of Talent Planning, 13x IRONMAN finisher

"I completed IRONMAN Louisville 2010 as part of Team in Training raising funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. It was a personal challenge to push my limits while raising donations for a good cause. Looking at my coaches and mentors from Team in Training, I thought, 'If ordinary men and women from all walks of life can commit to training and completing an IRONMAN, why not me?'" -Dr. Alexander Chin (Rancho Palos Verdes, California, USA), Chief of Anesthesiology, 14x IRONMAN finisher

"My husband and I decided to do one as a 10th wedding anniversary vacation. I was also motivated to get back into shape after delivering my third child, injuring my back, and seeing my health deteriorating." -Karen Segerson (Bainbridge Island, Washington, USA), Physician, 13x IRONMAN finisher

"I actually did an IRONMAN 70.3 for my first triathlon after owning a bike for only six months (and not being able to swim freestyle) as my husband, was signed up for a 70.3 and I thought I would do it with him. Then his best friend said to me, 'Wouldn't it be an achievement to complete a full IRONMAN in the same year you got your bike and learned to swim freestyle?' So I entered for IRONMAN Busselton just seven months after doing my first triathlon. After I entered the same guy said to me he was only kidding." -Carrie Crane (Perth, Western Australia), Business Owner, 14x IRONMAN finisher

"I enjoyed the challenge of racing the [IRONMAN] 70.3 distance, so I wanted to race a 140.6 to continue my growth as a triathlete and prove to myself that I could indeed race that 'crazy' distance. After my first finish in Tempe, I haven't looked back!" -Chuck Compson (Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA), Process Engineer, 13x IRONMAN finisher

"It was thanks to my dad. He has raced since I was three years old completing over 20 IRONMAN distance events. Since then I have always been motivated to follow in his footsteps. I was always eager to join him on race day, so when I turned 18 I decided to do my first ever triathlon (and it was an IRONMAN)." -Manuel Zapata Jr. (Redmond, Washington, USA), Software Engineer, 13x IRONMAN finisher

"Thinking back to my first IRONMAN in 2004, what made me think I can do this was the year before my husband Alan did his first IRONMAN and as I watched the day unfold I started to think 'I could do this.' After he finished I told him we have to stay and watch all the competitors finish. I can't explain the emotions or how proud I felt for them all. I wanted to be one of them, I wanted Mike Reilly to call me across the finish line and hear 'NICKI YOU ARE AN IRONMAN!' And so the journey began and is still going 13 years later -Nicki Davies (Melbourne, Australia), First Aid Officer/College Student Administrator, 14x IRONMAN finisher

"My brother did it, Oliver Dorigo, so I decided, what he can do—I can do it better ;) That was my motivation for the triathlon. My first IRONMAN was in 2000 in Roth and I was better." -Claudio Dorigo (Munich, Germany), Business Owner, 14x IRONMAN finisher

"My first was the 2005 IRONMAN Lake Placid. I had been running marathons for about 20 years and come down with a nasty case of plantar fasciitis. At the same time I was going through a divorce, just a few years after adopting our second child, along with my father recently dying of cancer. Basically, I was at rock bottom. My doctor suggested buying a bike and taking up swimming while my plantar fasciitis healed. It would have been easy to just give up at that low point so many years ago but I didn't. Now I’m a 14x IRONMAN finisher." -David Toothaker (Brunswick, Maine, USA), Buyer for Bath Iron Works, 14x IRONMAN finisher

"Coincidentally I found myself in Forster-Tuncurry the weekend of the 1997 IRONMAN Australia. While spectating on the bike course just out of town I was asked by an aid station captain if I could assist them as they were short on help. With a Volunteer t-shirt on my back I spent the next eight hours handing out drinks and food to the passing athletes and being in complete awe of what they were doing. That day the seed was planted. Five years later I finally toed the line in Forster-Tuncurry." -Chris Ernst/Ernie (East Maitland, NSW, Australia), Freelance Construction Consultant, 13x IRONMAN finisher

"I signed up for my first triathlon which was IRONMAN 70.3 Florida and IRONMAN UK on the same day. It was on November 17th, 2006 when I woke up an overweight alcoholic with no hopes or dreams convinced that I was going to die. I decided at that moment to do the hardest thing I'd ever heard of...IRONMAN! Today I believe that my dedication to IRONMAN has not only saved my life but it has also given me a life." -Douglas Eichhorn (Rockville, Maryland, USA), Self-employed license home-improvement contractor, 14x IRONMAN finisher

"I attended IRONMAN Wisconsin and spectated along with some friends and family and was completely blown away by the event. I was inspired to see all kinds of people participating. Witnessing their grit, determination, and relentless drive to finish was just amazing! I returned home and signed up for the 2006 IRONMAN Lake Placid through a charity spot and I said I was 'one and done.' Clearly that wasn't the case and during the race, I realized how much I loved both training for and racing IRONMAN. -Kristin Wedemeyer (Reston, Virginia, USA), Human Resources Manager, 13x IRONMAN finisher

"In 1994 I watched on television as Greg Welch ran down the finish chute of the IRONMAN World Championship in Hawaii and from that moment on it has been my goal to run down the finish chute in Hawaii. This is what got me started and what keeps me going." -Rachel Balding (Melbourne, Australia), Event Coordinator, 13x IRONMAN finisher

"Since I started competing in triathlons, I knew that one day I would sign up for the IRONMAN distance, and once I did I never stopped." -Fabrizio Terrinoni (Rome, Italy), Insurance Company Associate, 17x IRONMAN finisher

"In the year of the financial crisis, I injured my neck in a bike crash with a car, many of my co-workers were laid off, and I lost my father to cancer. I remembered a phrase from my Latin lessons in school: 'Carpe Diem'—seize the day. Because life is short! It was then I decided to move up from shorter distance triathlons to IRONMAN. I dedicated my first race, which was IRONMAN Coeur d'Alene on father's day, to my dad, who had just passed away that year." -Jan Schmitt (Los Angeles, California, USA), IT Project Manager, 15x IRONMAN finisher

"After running the Marine Corps Marathon in 2009, and laying in bed near death (or so I thought at the time), I watched the recap of the 2009 IRONMAN World Championship. Watching Sister Madonna's interview and the life in her is what made the journey one worth taking for me." -Brandt Burns (Broomfield, Colorado, USA), Financial Planner, 13x IRONMAN finisher

"My triathlon career began when my oldest son competed in the 2002 IRONKIDS in Mesa, Arizona. I was very intrigued with it all, I was looking for a break from long distance running, it just seemed to be a natural progression. When IRONMAN Arizona was announced in 2005, just a few days before my birthday I had to do it. I have been hooked ever since." -Scott B Perrine (Gilbert, Arizona, USA), Director of Commercial Sales GCP Applied Technologies, 14x IRONMAN finisher

"I grew up watching coverage of IRONMAN on t.v. and always thought it would be fun to try. My friend had done a few IRONMAN races, so I went to Arizona in 2006 to watch and was so inspired I signed up the next day." -Chuck Settles (Phoenix, Arizona, USA), Software Manager, 14x IRONMAN finisher

"Seeing highlights of the early years of IRONMAN in Hawaii and believing that I could finish it even though I could not swim. My belief never waivered." -Boey Alam (Caringbah, Australia), Transport/Warehouse Manager, 14x IRONMAN finisher.